New Year 2012

Well it's a new year so some house keeping needed to be taken care of.

First job was to tax the Nova and the second was to renewed my competition licence. I can't remember why I changed from a "Non-Race Clubman" to getting a "Non-Race Nation B" last year but I must have had good reason so I got the same one again this time. The price has gone up by just over 5% which I suppose is similar to inflation but I think the MSA should have keep the price of the low level licences the same as last year.

As it's January, the Dakar Rally has been on TV, and it's just as spectacular as ever, it really is one of my favourite events of the year to watch. The amount of energy that it takes to compete in any of the categories must be immense, the people are super human. I really don't know how the bikers bodies stand up to the abuse of hundreds of miles across country, they are amazing.

I missed a couple of Lanes Rallies at the end of 2011. I was away on holiday for the Magherafelt "Tintmaster Navigation Lanes Rally" but from what I've heard I was lucky to miss it. Apparently there was a lot of time delays and the tests weren't good enough to make up for that. The results look a bit funny to me too but that's a different issue. A lanes rally is a new thing for most clubs so it's understandable that the first one will have some issue, hopefully the event will be better next year when I'm sure I'll be taking part. I also missed the UAC's "It's Not the Boxing Day Rally" but that one was through choice. I felt that the entry fee was far too high so voted with my feet and didn't take part. The entry was £75, plus lets call it £20 for insurance, plus £15 each to join the UAC. That's £125 before I even put fuel in the car. It's too much for a lanes rally. I did hear very good things about the event so maybe the extra cost was worth it.

It could be a very busy year for me as I've been voted onto the ANICC Navigation Rally committee for 2012. With the poor turn out at navigation rallies in 2011 it has been decided to run an alternative Championship on 2012 with the emphasis on bringing in new competitors. There will be a lot more promotional work to do so hopefully it will be time well spent and we get to have a bumper championship in 2013.


Costs:
MSA Competition Licence, £41
Nova Road Tax, 12 months, £215

Magherafelt Lanes Rally Results
It's Not the Boxing Day Rally results

MOT Pass

Brilliant news, the rally Nova passed it's MOT yesterday. All I need now is some road tax and I'm fully legal again. It feels like the car has been off the road for ages so it was great to take it for a drive. I love driving it, it's raw and noisy but I get a kick out of every mile I do in it. There is still plenty of work to be done to tidy the car up but at least I can use it again now. I have bought all the equipment that is needed to build the car up to MSA spec so I can get it log booked, then I can use it in any event I want.

I would never have got it finished without all the work that Niall has done on it. He is really enthusiastic about the rally car and he mechanics at 10 times the speed I do.

Nova Accident

There it is, looking sorry for itself. Unfortunately I had an accident while driving the Nova last week and it's put my plans for the year back a good bit. There was a fair bit of damage done and every panel has been damaged to some extent. I plan to rebuild her as it's still a solid shell underneath and solid Nova's are very hard to come by these days. I think it will take about £1000 to put her right so it will be beans on toast for dinner and no nights out for the next few months. I have just recently bought the parts that are needed to upgrade the car so I can get it MSA log booked, but now I have no rally car to put the new parts on, and no money to fix the car, not a very good situation.

Couple of new parts have been ordered. New complete pattern front panel (GM 90 320 506) from a shop on eBay, £123, and a new genuine thermostat housing (GM 90 234 805) because the original one got broken in half in the crash, £35.98.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Crash-Repair-Parts?_trksid=p4340.l2563
http://www.vauxhallworldparts.com/partsearch/partdetail.php?partid=1878

MSA 'Go Rallying' starter pack

I would like to be in a position to do some stage rallies next year, nothing fancy, just whatever the cheapest tarmac events turn out to be. So the first thing I'll need will be the correct competition licence. This year I have a "Non-Race National B" so to do any stage rallying I will need to upgrade to a "Rally National B Stage". Unlike my current licence this one can't just be applied for, I will need to pass a test. This is known as the BARS test and so far as I can tell it involves a written test on safety and then a practical test where I will have to show an examiner that I can control a rally car safely and I wont be a danger to anyone on a special stage. The BARS test can only be taken at a MSA approved rally school and there is only one in NI.

Before I can take the BARS test I need to buy a 'Go Rallying' pack from the MSA. The pack cost £57 and for that high price I was expecting it to contain some useful items or information that would help me get started in motorsport, but unfortunately I was left disappointed.

'Go Rallying' pack contents:

Information letter,
Form to apply for the "Stage Rally National B" licence,
Go Rallying & First Aid in Motorsport CD,
Interactive year book DVD,
Blue book/Yearbook,
Demon Tweeks catalogue,

List of approved rally school,
Notes for filling out the licence form,
Return envelope.

Of all that only the form to apply for my licence and the CD/DVDs are useful. The form and the videos could be put on the internet and it would do away with the need for a starter pack altogether and save every new competitor £57. For an organisation that should be trying to encourage people to get involved in motorsport this seems like a very poor introduction. They should be trying to take barriers out of the way not putting them up. Unfortunately it looks like the MSA are taking advantage of their monopoly position and ripping off competitors right from the very start of their motorsport careers. Motorsport is an expensive enough hobby, without the governing body adding to it.



MSA 'Go Rallying' starter pack:
http://shop.msauk.org/product_details.asp?id=4073

Paper work

My plan for this year is to compete in some Hill Climb and Sprint events as well as the full Northern Ireland Navigation rally championship, and as it's January it's time to renew my competition licence. There are many different grades of licence and I think it's a bit confusing so I'll try and make it as simple as possible.

To start Navigation rallies no competition licence is needed for the beginners class, but you will need to be a member of each club. Joining the individual clubs can get a bit costly and if your doing the full season then it's actually cheaper to get a "Non-Race Clubman" licence. You will need a competition licence in the future if you get a taste for Navigation rallying and want to move up to the higher classes.

As I am aiming to compete in Hill Climb and Sprint events, which are classified as "Speed" events I will need to upgrade to the next level which is the "Non-Race National B" licence. To my knowledge this should cover me for all Hill's and Sprints in Northern Ireland. The licence will also allow me to compete as a navigator on Stage Rallies, should any opportunities come up.

See here for the MSA competition licence application form, including prices:
http://www.msauk.org/uploadedfiles/msa_forms/2011_Initial_Application_Form.pdf

and see here (page 17) for a list of what licences are required for each type of event:
http://www.msauk.org/uploadedfiles/msa_forms/bluebooks/11/124-141%20Comps%20-%20Licences.pdf